Two Japanese hot-air balloonists are preparing to cross the Pacific Ocean from Japan to Canada or the U.S. West Coast this week.

If successful, their flight would be only the second trans-Pacific hot-air balloon crossing.

Team leader Michio Kanda, who has held hot-air ballooning world records in altitude and distance flown, said last week the balloon would likely take off from just outside Tokyo later this week, depending on wind conditions.

"I'm looking at some time after Jan. 20, probably Jan. 24 or 25," he said. "We are planning to land somewhere on the North American continent, probably Canada, Washington or Oregon. It will all depend on wind and other conditions."

Kanda said the crossing would probably take 50 to 60 hours. Their craft, Milky Way 2, is 36 meters tall -- about eight times bigger than the average hot-air balloon -- with a square, mostly aluminum gondola.

"I decided to cross the Pacific Ocean because I wanted to use all the techniques of hot-air balloon flights that I have acquired over the years," Kanda said. "I have set world records in altitude, distance and other categories, and wanted to do some project that uses everything I have learned."

Kanda said he had hoped to make the flight last year but was discouraged by logistic problems resulting from the war in Iraq and stepped-up security following the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

British entrepreneur and adventurer Richard Branson made the first hot-air Pacific crossing, in 1991, also departing from Japan.

Two balloonists are on standby to fly with Kanda. The decision on who will actually go has not yet been made, he said.